Marce-B & Kay-Vo on the Mic
The Vault podcast puts a fresh spin on economic development
With the names “Marce B” and “KayVo,” you’d think these women are pop culture podcasters who riff on the latest trends. They do. It’s just not what you’d expect. On their weekly podcast, “The Vault at 201 North Broadway,” the two candidly chat with the men and women who are blazing new trails and driving business in Billings.
By day, Marce B is Marcell Bruski, the senior director of engagement at Big Sky Economic Development. Marketing, communication and branding is her gig. She also oversees BillingsWorks, which drives workforce development in our city, and manages the Rock 31 program, which is a business incubator and coworking space. KayVo, a.k.a Kayla Vokral, is the Small Business Development Center’s business advisor and training manager, who helps entrepreneurs find solutions to their everyday issues. But, when these two pair up to record the podcast, it boils down to helping the community see economic development through the eyes of our city’s entrepreneurs.
“We wanted the podcast to be a little more fun than just economic development — not like economic development isn’t fun,” Marcell says with a laugh. “Your community grows and it’s healthy because of the people in it and the people doing the work. So, by highlighting our small business owners, our entrepreneurs in the community, workforce leaders, resource partners, it’s really just about educating people on the things going on in their community. It all makes the community what it is. That's economic development.”
Each episode highlights a different person. Each has an interesting story to share of how he or she had a hand in expanding or pivoting within the city’s business world.
“I’m going to throw the Seafood Guys out here,” Kayla says. “How can people understand and listen to their customers and pivot their business to match that? When we came up with that idea, Jon (Wanderaas) immediately came to mind.” Kayla shares how his customers asked for seafood kits to make preparing a breeze. She says, “He understood what his customer wanted and acted on that.”
At the end of every show, the pair loves asking what they call three rapid-fire questions to learn a little bit more about every guest. They might ask something “snoopy,” like what is your standard coffee order? Or, how do you start your day? They didn’t expect Kaitlyn Bolotas of House of Color’s answer to the question, “What advice would you give an entrepreneur who is just starting out?”
“She said one of my favorite things,” Kayla says. “She said, ‘Don’t quit when it’s hard.’ I just love that. Don’t give up when it’s hard because those are the days that you want to but those aren’t the times to make those decisions.”
In February, the two will launch season three with close to 100 episodes under their belts.
“It’s super weird because we just like having conversations with people and sharing their stories,” Kayla says. “Did we think years ago that we would be talking about season three and almost 10,000 downloads? No.”
Marcell laughs when she thinks of the show’s humble beginnings. They were able to secure funding for equipment thanks to a grant during the Covid pandemic.
“We had no idea what we were doing — zero,” Marcell says. “Oh my gosh,” Kayla chimes in with a laugh, “we didn’t know what we didn’t know!” But, over time, they listened to other podcasts to get ideas on their show’s structure, and they partnered with Wade Haesemeyer of Lamplighter Creative to manage the podcast production.
“We were really intentional,” Marcell says. “If we were going to do this, we were going to lean in and do it well.”
Last November, Marcell presented at the Young, Smart & Local conference in Philadelphia and shared how a podcast can be a powerful tool to get and keep young talent. She gave a nuts and bolts talk on everything from content creation and scheduling to creative ways to market a show.
At the conference, Marcell says, one attendee came up to her and called her a podcast expert. The comment threw her for a loop.
“It’s wild to think that or even just say that,” she says with a laugh.
Truth be told, the show is turning heads statewide and across the nation. In September of last year, they received an Excellence in Economic Development Silver Award from the International Economic Development Council celebrating their innovation through digital media. In the fall of 2023, the pair earned an Impact Award through the Montana Economic Developers Association for the creative ways they celebrate economic development.
“It’s really cool that we get the recognition for that hard work,” says Steve Arveschoug, executive director at BSED. He applauds Marcell and Kayla’s efforts and says he really doesn’t see a sunset for this kind of show.
“As long as we keep telling the stories of other people in a way that helps people understand how we come alongside them to provide resources, leadership and support for those successful business journeys, I think we’ve hit something special,” Steve says.
Both Kayla and Marcell love the fact that a busy retailer or active restaurateur could listen to their show as they work.
“If I was a business owner doing inventory, I could pop headphones in and listen to the content that could help me in different ways in my business,” Kayla says. Both she and Marcell know that’s happening. While most of the listeners are from south-central Montana, covering for the most part a nine-county region, the two recently uncovered a vibrant pocket of listeners in, of all places, Boardman, Oregon.
Kayla laughs as she says, “Who listened and shared it with the village? It’s a town of about 4,200 people!”
No matter who the two decide to bring on their show, both agree there’s an underlying theme in the type of person who sits in the spotlight for an hour with them.
“There’s so much grit,” Marcell says. “They are going to figure it out and they are going to do it even if it is hard. They are going to push themselves and they are going to be better on the other end for it. That is so inspiring.”
TO LISTEN, simply visit thevaultat201.com for all their episodes. You can also follow them on Facebook at facebook.com/thevault201 or on Instagram at @thevault_201.
